Archive for the 'Home And Family' Category
Home Solar Power Systems
Anna Williams asked:
Here are some basic facts about solar energy for the home.
A home solar power system has several standard components they are as follows:
* PV Modules or solar panels (to turn solar energy into electricity)
* A charge controller (this is an electrical device that prevents batteries from overcharging and from power running from the batteries into the solar panels).
* Batteries, to store the electricity for night time usage.
* An inverter (an device which changes the electricity created by the solar panels into electricity ready for use in your regular household wall sockets). Solar panels create Direct Current DC and a household runs on A/C Alternating Current.
* In the case of a hybrid home solar system, an automatic switch to get current from the electrical grid, or some other power source such as a generator would be included as well. The advantage of using a hybrid system is that you will not be dependent upon solar energy alone.
* A 1-kilowatt home solar system is sufficient for most households.
* A 1-kilowatt home solar system will provide roughly 1,600 kilowatts per year in a sunny climate (receiving 5.5 hrs of sunlight each day) and about 750 kilowatt hours per year in cloudy climates (receiving 2.5 hours of sunlight each day).
* A 1-kilowatt home solar system is uses about 10-12 solar panels, and requires about 100 square feet of installation area (which could be the roof of your home or a section of land on your property).
* A 1-kilowatt home solar system reduces waste and pollution by about 170 lbs. of coal from being burned, 300 pounds of carbon dioxide from being released into the atmosphere and 105 gallons of water from being consumed each month! A big step toward protecting our environment, in other words.
* With battery back up, a solar energy system can provide electricity day and night, no matter what the weather conditions. Other options, which include back-up generators and grid-tie systems, provide total security.
* On average a 1-kilowatt home solar system takes about 1-2 days to install and costs around US$10,000 (though prices are coming down), but can vary greatly and does not take into account any tax incentives offered by the government for reducing carbon emissions.
* Most systems come with a 5-year warranty, although the solar panels are warranted for 20, and as technology advances some are even coming out with a 30 year warranty.
Here are some basic facts about solar energy for the home.
A home solar power system has several standard components they are as follows:
* PV Modules or solar panels (to turn solar energy into electricity)
* A charge controller (this is an electrical device that prevents batteries from overcharging and from power running from the batteries into the solar panels).
* Batteries, to store the electricity for night time usage.
* An inverter (an device which changes the electricity created by the solar panels into electricity ready for use in your regular household wall sockets). Solar panels create Direct Current DC and a household runs on A/C Alternating Current.
* In the case of a hybrid home solar system, an automatic switch to get current from the electrical grid, or some other power source such as a generator would be included as well. The advantage of using a hybrid system is that you will not be dependent upon solar energy alone.
* A 1-kilowatt home solar system is sufficient for most households.
* A 1-kilowatt home solar system will provide roughly 1,600 kilowatts per year in a sunny climate (receiving 5.5 hrs of sunlight each day) and about 750 kilowatt hours per year in cloudy climates (receiving 2.5 hours of sunlight each day).
* A 1-kilowatt home solar system is uses about 10-12 solar panels, and requires about 100 square feet of installation area (which could be the roof of your home or a section of land on your property).
* A 1-kilowatt home solar system reduces waste and pollution by about 170 lbs. of coal from being burned, 300 pounds of carbon dioxide from being released into the atmosphere and 105 gallons of water from being consumed each month! A big step toward protecting our environment, in other words.
* With battery back up, a solar energy system can provide electricity day and night, no matter what the weather conditions. Other options, which include back-up generators and grid-tie systems, provide total security.
* On average a 1-kilowatt home solar system takes about 1-2 days to install and costs around US$10,000 (though prices are coming down), but can vary greatly and does not take into account any tax incentives offered by the government for reducing carbon emissions.
* Most systems come with a 5-year warranty, although the solar panels are warranted for 20, and as technology advances some are even coming out with a 30 year warranty.
A Wind Power Generator.build it yourself Get Free Electricity
John Mowatt asked:
You can build your own wind power generator at quite low cost.Commercially made wind turbines are available but they are expensive.Building your own is quite easy and will save you a great deal of money.Plans and instructions are available to simplify the job.Using used auto parts and a few odds and ends you can build an excellent and reliable wind power generator.You could build several for the cost of one commercial turbine and sell your excess power to the power company in many areas.
For the future it is now obvious that electric power produced by wind turbines is the best way to go.It is easily the most usable form of alternative energy at present.Many cities around the world already produce some or all of their electricity needs from wind power.These days most people want to help save our environment and an easy way to do this is to build one or more small wind turbines to produce our own electric power.Not only do we help mother earth but we get free power from the wind into the bargain.Solar panels are another alternative but their power output is limited and they are expensive.They do have a place for certain applications however.
From the 1930s through the 1950s wind power was used to generate electricity on many farms.It was also used for other tasks such as pumping water from wells.In these much more prosperous days most people have given up on this idea and prefer to pay the power company for their elecricity.Now in this 21st century it has become obvious to all that we need to find ways to produce power which are less damaging to the environment.Oil,gas and particularly coal fired power plants are one of the big sources of air pollution.We need to cut back drastically on their use before our environment is irreversably damaged.Free power from the wind is an excellent alternative.Free abundant and universal the wind can be harnessed to produce much of our power needs in the future.
Individual power production on a small scale is increasingly popular.Many consumers are now installing small wind power generators to generate at least part of their power needs.If you have a country home,with no power line access,you need to have your own power plant.Gasoline or diesel powered generators have been used by some people to produce power in country locations.These are sources of pollution of course and with the ever increasing cost of oil they are not very practical any more.Wind power is the obvious way to go.
It is not hard to build a small wind power electricity generator.The average home workshopper can do it using simple tools.Detailed illustrated plans with instructions are available and make the task fairly simple.Used auto parts,wood and a few odds and ends will build a very efficient generator which is easy to operate and maintain.Put it on the roof in your city or country home or on a free standing support and generate your own power free,courtesy of the wind and every little breeze.
You can build your own wind power generator at quite low cost.Commercially made wind turbines are available but they are expensive.Building your own is quite easy and will save you a great deal of money.Plans and instructions are available to simplify the job.Using used auto parts and a few odds and ends you can build an excellent and reliable wind power generator.You could build several for the cost of one commercial turbine and sell your excess power to the power company in many areas.
For the future it is now obvious that electric power produced by wind turbines is the best way to go.It is easily the most usable form of alternative energy at present.Many cities around the world already produce some or all of their electricity needs from wind power.These days most people want to help save our environment and an easy way to do this is to build one or more small wind turbines to produce our own electric power.Not only do we help mother earth but we get free power from the wind into the bargain.Solar panels are another alternative but their power output is limited and they are expensive.They do have a place for certain applications however.
From the 1930s through the 1950s wind power was used to generate electricity on many farms.It was also used for other tasks such as pumping water from wells.In these much more prosperous days most people have given up on this idea and prefer to pay the power company for their elecricity.Now in this 21st century it has become obvious to all that we need to find ways to produce power which are less damaging to the environment.Oil,gas and particularly coal fired power plants are one of the big sources of air pollution.We need to cut back drastically on their use before our environment is irreversably damaged.Free power from the wind is an excellent alternative.Free abundant and universal the wind can be harnessed to produce much of our power needs in the future.
Individual power production on a small scale is increasingly popular.Many consumers are now installing small wind power generators to generate at least part of their power needs.If you have a country home,with no power line access,you need to have your own power plant.Gasoline or diesel powered generators have been used by some people to produce power in country locations.These are sources of pollution of course and with the ever increasing cost of oil they are not very practical any more.Wind power is the obvious way to go.
It is not hard to build a small wind power electricity generator.The average home workshopper can do it using simple tools.Detailed illustrated plans with instructions are available and make the task fairly simple.Used auto parts,wood and a few odds and ends will build a very efficient generator which is easy to operate and maintain.Put it on the roof in your city or country home or on a free standing support and generate your own power free,courtesy of the wind and every little breeze.